Connecting with Web 2.0 by Ariana Mesa

Steven Johnson and Brian Williams take two opposite positions regarding the new age in Internet- sometimes called the “You” Age. Most web pages nowadays are created by web users for web users. Therefore, people can pick and choose what music to listen to, what news to watch, and what stories to post. This new age has been seen as slightly controversial. “For some, it has power-to-the-people authenticity. For others, it signals the end of quality and professionalism,…” (Johnson, 447). Johnson believes that the new way that the Web caters to you is an asset to people. The fact that newspapers and news channels on television do not always provide local news is something Johnson believes can be solved by user-based Web 2.0. Williams does not think it is safe for people to choose which news they hear. He believes that there is certain news that is imperative for citizens to be aware of, and if people get to choose, then they won’t hear the things that are necessary. Although Web 2.0 makes it far too easy to ignore issues that aren’t of interest to you, it is an incredibly important and useful resource and tool for networking and sharing news in today’s society. Web 2.0 provides a fast and easy way to reconnect with old friends and keep in touch with new friends, and it also gives local communities the opportunity they need to share news.

The “You” Age in Internet has many valuable qualities as a social network. Steven Johnson discusses the idea that Web 2.0 caters specifically to your needs as a web user in his article “It’s All About Us”. The web is no longer only for informational purposes. It is a vast social network that serves as a tool that smaller communities and individuals can use to share information or specific interests. Johnson points out that Web 2.0 is an effective way of sharing information from local communities because mass media coverage generally ignores smaller stories. But something the mass media misses is that smaller stories in their terms may be colossal to others. The “You” Internet is also an effective way of demonstrating that people may not always want the media’s “expert” opinions. “The fact is that most user-created content on the Web is not challenging the authority of a traditional expert. It’s working in a zone where there are no experts or where the users themselves are experts” (Johnson, 447). Social networking was never designed as an alternative to news sources, it just serves as a way for people to get the information they want from the experts they need. Those experts come from tight-knit communities in which people share their knowledge for their specific interests. Largely broadcasted news programs generally neglect stories that don’t include most of the world as a whole. This causes difficulty for those of us who wish to be aware of things that are important to us. An example of a news story that was not shown in the mass media news coverage comes from the Mojave National Preserve in California. This story should have been featured in the news because the issue it is discussing calls into question our constitutional rights.

Recently a debate has been brought to the Supreme Court regarding a five to eight foot-tall cross that is currently displayed on top of Sunrise Rock in the Mojave National Preserve in California. The issue was first brought up about ten years ago when an employee at the National Park thought that the cross could be favoring the Christian religion, therefore violating the First Amendment. The First Amendment stops congress from making laws favoring one religion over the other and stops the government from showing preference of religion. Because the National Park is government property, the cross was seen as establishing religion, even though it was originally intended as a war memorial. According to this article, the cross has been seen has a war memorial since 1934. The land that makes up the Mojave National Reserve was then given to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, therefore relinquishing it from government property. The Supreme Court is being asked to decide if giving the land over to the VFW solves the problem of the claim of violation of the First Amendment. They may also be asked to see if the cross should have been allowed to be on public land.

Largely broadcast news stations often skip over “small-town news” or stories that they feel will not impact a large audience. By focusing on the stories that only affect the world as a whole, the mass media neglects stories that can be very important to smaller communities. Why shouldn’t smaller communities be given the opportunity to discuss those issues they hold dear to them in a network? They aren’t causing any harm by providing each other with the information they want regarding the issues specific to them. Web 2.0 is very useful for when those small communities or individuals who need an expert opinion can’t rely on the traditional experts on the news. When given the chance to utilize Web 2.0, people are creating a world in which they are the experts, and in which specific information can be found among those that are trustworthy. Having specific websites created makes it easier for members of a community or individuals to find specific information that they may not be able to find on the news.

In regards to smaller stories, the article reporting on the war memorial in Mojave National Preserve should have been a highly publicized news story because it deals with something as important and serious as our First Amendment Rights. The people from the community that surround the Mojave National Park obviously had something of concern to discuss in regards to whether or not their rights as Americans were being violated by this war memorial, and the rest of America should know when our rights are being called into question. Also, the surrounding community has the right to have the media help shed light on their predicament. The war memorial caused people distress for many years. “A decade ago, [the cross memorial] came under legal attack from a former National Park Service employee who, though a Catholic himself, thought it was inappropriate to favor one religion over another in the preserve. The park service had turned down a request to have a Buddhist symbol erected nearby” (Savage). Not only was the issue discussed ten years ago, it was brought up again as something that clearly bothered the surrounding community. It might be seen as gross negligence of the mass media to not publicize this article on a large broadcast. When something as important as civil rights are at stake, the rest of the world should know. Web 2.0 served as a way to make people aware of the way some people felt about their rights.